Chapter 25: Fredric's Decision
To make up for the mistake in the last chapter, I'm giving you a new one now. Truth be told, I just can't help myself. I hope you enjoy it. I wonder if I haven't made too many chapters to portrait one single day though. I suddenly realized how long this day becomes for our characters. Thank you for comments and following. I don't mind you asking questions, it helps me improve.
"Prince Lars is right, Your Majesty."
The mild voice of the physician brought him out of his thoughts. "Yes, Phineas?"
The old man placed himself near Varian again to keep an eye on his patient the whole time when they spoke, seeking any sign of him to wake, and did not take his eyes from the boy when he spoke. "I say, if Your Majesty wants to help him, now is the time."
As the King struggled with his own laments and thoughts, he felt a need to eye him closer up and walked over till he was standing over Varian. His hand trembled when he lowered it towards his head and had to force him to lay it down above his bandaged forehead. Messy black bangs were sticking up and covering the bandage and half his face, and he found himself suddenly carefully stroking the locks away from his face. He looked so still and calm. Like he was just sleeping.
This was the first time the King was having physical contact with the young alchemist, except from the time in his lab where the sassy boy had leaned himself on him and mocked him. But it was different now, and all of a sudden it was like he was once and for all reminded how young the poor boy really was. So young, and he had been through so much. The King felt the lump in his throat return by watching the fragile figure lying here. How had this lanky body been able to keep up so much resistance?
"I am so sorry, my boy..." he whispered low. "I am so... so sorry..."
He suddenly looked up as he felt something on his hand, and found Ruddiger, grabbing his hand with one paw while he looked up at him with his sweet, black eyes, then at Varian, and then at him again, as if he were pleading to him not to harm him. Fredric looked at him. All this time, it had seemed like the little critter had tried to excuse his master's behavior and asked them not to be too hard on him.
Just like Rapunzel had plead him not to be. It stung his heart to once again be reminded of his daughter. If she had seen him like this, she would have been heartbroken, and most likely been crying her eyes out by his bed right now.
As Fredric looked from the boy to the critter a couple of times, a decision took form inside his head at sudden. And at last, Fredric removed his hand from the boy, took a deep breath and looked down at Phineas.
"Let me speak to him!"
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Arianna lifted her dress as she hurried through the corridor. She felt her hair was about to loosen up behind her, and she was all sweat, but she didn't even notice. As she ran past Old Lady Crowley, she stopped herself and turned back.
"Excuse me, Mrs. Crowley, do you think you could..."
But the old lady were about to disappear through a door, and Arianna didn't even manage to finish of her sentence before the door was closed. "Ah, never mind..." Arianna sighed heavily and lifted up her dress again, and continued running. But as she crossed a corner, she gave a loud cry when she almost crashed into someone.
"Ah! Your majesty!"
Arianna stopped and almost fell backwards as she found herself almost running into Pete and Stan.
"Oh, it's just the you two." Arianna let out a sigh of relief, panting in the process. "Thank goodness!"
"Did Your Majesty think of anyone else?" Pete asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Her Majesty probably thought we were Varian, you fool!" Stan said.
"Hey, don't call me a..." Pete begun objecting when Arianna broke in with a cough.
"Pete? Stan?"
Both men stood up straight in front of her. "Yes Ma'am!" they said in unison.
"I am so glad I ran into you. I need you to do an important task for me. Can you do that?" she asked with her hands folded. "Without asking any questions?"
"Of course, Your Majesty!" Stan said.
"We'll do whatever Your Majesty ask!" Pete said.
"Ah good!" she let out a sigh. "Look, I need you to go straight to the kitchen. Tell Violet that Karen is alright and that the prisoner has been found!" she said, and then suddenly recalled the last detail. "And that she can keep concentrating on the dinner."
"He has?!" Pete widened his eyes. "Did you hear that, Stan? Varian is found!"
"But that's great!" Stan said. "But then we have to arrest him and take him back to the dungeon!"
"That... might not be necessary!" Arianna hurried to say.
"Oh? Has the Captain got him?" Stan asked.
"That's not important. Now you the just go to the kitchen and let Violet know that her granddaughter is safe!"
"But Your Majesty..." Pete tried.
"HURRY!"
All the Castle staff knew very well that whenever Queen Arianna went as far as raising her voice, you were not to cross line with her. Both Pete and Stan understood now that they were pretty close doing so, and made a quick salute before they both ran off.
"But where are we going, Stan?" Pete asked.
"To the kitchen, you fool!" Stan replied as they crossed a corner.
"Hey, stop calling me..." their voices died as they both disappeared.
Arianna found herself standing still and catching her breath, not realizing how much she had ran. She was about to keep walking when suddenly a scratching pain on her heels made her shut her eyes hard and hiss. She leaned to the wall while she took off her shoes. She bent down to gently touch her feet, and frowned when her hand came across a blister on both her heels.
"Terriffic! Just what I needed right now." she growled to herself and picked up her shoes. "Good thing I'm heading over to the Physician anyway." And with her shoes in her right hand, she kept on walking to her destination.
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Phineas took his eyes off the boy a moment and stood up to face him. "Your Majesty..." the physician begun, but Fredric cut him off.
"I know he's not ready for the truth yet, but I... I want to give him the impression that he can trust me. I wish to let him know... that I want to be there for him. I... I won't mention anything like you said, but I need to do this, Phineas. You... You always say that a human being is not in balance unless you have everything in peace inside yourself. Well, I won't be in balance, and I won't have peace with myself unless I get a chance to speak with him as... not his enemy. And... maybe he won't either. Perhaps there would be some part of his mind that will... understand that if he can trust me... then he might handle the truth better later on?"
The old physician stood still while he spoke.
"I know he's just a child, and... not everything he's done is entirely his fault. I take my blame for his condition, he shouldn't have been in this state at all. That's why I need to do this. There has been an ice front between the boy and me for quite a while. I believe that in order for me to break this, I need to let him think it's not there in the first place. Please allow me this. In order to bring peace to us both. Please, let me make him understand that I only want him well! That all I really want, is to help him! Because there is nothing I want more! I promised my daughter I would do so, and if this is the best way, then... let me!?"
Phineas listened with a stone face, and after Fredric had finished, he stood with his eyes half closed, seemingly looking down on the floor, or at nothing in particular. After a long minute that seemed like forever, his narrow eyes seemed to soften a little. The physician turned his gaze towards the windows when he finally spoke. "Those were wise words, Sire. And there might be truth in it . For his own well being..."
His thoughts were interrupted when they he heard a moan. The King and the physician and the Prince turned towards the bed and saw Varian move a little where he lied. Ruddiger got so delighted for a life sign that he jumped around him.
"No one does anything until I give a sign." the old physician said, and the two men nodded.
Then the elder walked over to the other side of Varian's bed. There, he signalized for the King to approach so that they were facing him from both sides. This was a clever move, as they could both take action if something went wrong. He signalized to Lars to stand in the middle, and the red haired Prince obeyed without objecting. Fredric brought a stool by the end of the wall and decided to put himself in a lower level near the boy, as a way to attend less frightening to him, and sat down beside the bed. Lars leaned himself on the edge of the bed, looking with eager eyes for the boy to wake up.
From his lying position, Varian made another sound, and Phineas sat down on the bed beside his figure to touch his forehead. Varian slowly opened his eyes, but wasn't able to make anything out of his surroundings yet, only to make odd sounds of confusion. Ruddiger eagerly begun sniffing his master's face and patting it, and as the critters whiskers tickled, Varian made an odd sound while he wrinkled his nose and wagged his head a bit before slowly opening his heavy eyelids and smiled weakly at his friend.
"Nnngh... Hi, buddy." he managed to mumble.
Ruddiger got so relieved that he crooned loudly of delight as Varian clumsy led a hand gently tough his fur. He giggled low as the raccoon nudged his head to his cheek.
"Varian?" Phineas asked calmly. "Do you respond to me?"
"Whah... huh?" the confused boy asked, still with a blurred vision.
Phineas chuckled slightly at his comical appearance. "Are you alright, lad? You gave us quite a scare now."
"Uhm... Phini... Hi..." Varian closed his eyes hard a moment before looking at him with hazy eyes, his hand around Ruddiger. "Still... in the Castle?" he mumbled.
"Still in the Castle." the physician replied smiling.
"Nnaah..." was his respond.
Phineas looked up at Fredric and gave him a nod, as a sign that he could make his move. Feeling a bit nervous at sudden, Fredric cleared his throat silently and looked at him.
"H-hello, son?" he said carefully, his voice trembling as he spoke.
Varian's head went right to his left at the sound of his voice, the boy's drowsy, blue eyes facing his.
"D-Dad?"